Alfredo Aceves to close deal

Valentine hands 9th to versatile righty

Credit: AP

DETROIT — All along, the Red Sox were counting on Alfredo Aceves to pitch in impactful situations this season.

How about the ninth inning?

Until last weekend, Aceves was competing for a spot in the starting rotation. But with closer Andrew Bailey having surgery yesterday on a damaged ligament in his right thumb, manager Bobby Valentine tapped Aceves as his replacement, preferring to leave Mark Melancon in his role as the primary set-up man.

“He loves competition,” Valentine said of Aceves, the right-handed swingman with enough stuff to be a starter but all the personality quirks of a late-inning reliever. “He’s one of the better competitors that I’ve seen. I could be wrong. I haven’t seen him up close and personal in battle, but I believe that he’s a very good competitor, to say nothing of a very good pitcher.”

Aceves, 30, doesn’t figure to be an ordinary closer. For one thing, he has a far more varied repertoire than the two-pitch mix of most closers, featuring enough pitches that the Red Sox believe he could be an effective starter.

Valentine also said he wouldn’t hesitate to use Aceves for more than one inning. Last year, he made 27 multi-inning relief appearances, and by September, there wasn’t a pitcher then-manager Terry Francona trusted more.

Although he wasn’t pleased last weekend when lefty Felix Doubront and converted reliever Daniel Bard secured the final two rotation spots, Aceves called his new role “a compromise.”

“I’m real excited. Of course I am,” he said, straight-faced. “It doesn’t look like it. I have a pretty bad face. But I’m excited.”

Aceves has only four career saves, three coming when he pitched the final three innings of blowouts. Melancon, his roommate in 2008 when they were in Double A with the Yankees, has far more experience as a closer, going 20-for-25 in save opportunities for the Houston Astros last season. When the Red Sox traded for Melancon in December, general manager Ben Cherington expressed faith in his ability to finish games.

Valentine also conceded that he weighed Aceves’ value as a multi-inning pitcher. But he said Aceves’ familiarity with the American League gave him an advantage over Melancon. Aceves is 24-3 with a 2.93 ERA in 114 career appearances, all but nine in relief, for the Yankees and Red Sox.

And down the stretch last season, while the Red Sox were collapsing, Aceves was at his best, posting a 1.21 ERA in 19 outings after Aug. 13.

“I would’ve liked to have that role,” Melancon said of stepping in for Bailey. “I feel that I can do that. But with that said, I’m not disappointed. I came into spring training knowing I was probably not going to have that role anyway.”

Coming up with the Yankees, Melancon and Aceves never talked about the possibility of someday being a closer. Not with Mariano Rivera trusted implicitly with handling the ninth inning in New York.

But Melancon expressed confidence that Aceves has the ability — and the personality — to be successful for as long as Bailey is out, likely at least four months, according to a team source.

“He knows how to get outs, but his versatility is great,” Melancon said. “I think that might allow him to get four outs. If I get four outs and he gets four outs, something like that, we’ll be fine. He’s got a lot of pitches. He’s not afraid to throw them.”

Aceves also likely won’t be intimidated by the ninth inning. Safeguarding slim leads in the final innings means operating without a safety net. If a pitcher allows runs in the seventh or eighth inning, his team still has a chance to come back. That isn’t always the case for a closer, especially on the road.

But Aceves takes a different view.

“It will be more easy as a reliever (than) as a starter,” he said. “As a starter, you’ve got to wait five days. As a reliever, you have the next day. It’s the greatest thing about baseball that you can, if you have a bad day, you come back the next day and have a chance. Everybody has the next day.”

All that’s left, then, is for Aceves to select his entrance music at Fenway Park. If he already has made his choice, he isn’t revealing it.